1
as in flinching
to draw back in fear, pain, or disgust
we quailed when the waiter unexpectedly presented us with a hindquarter of frog's legs
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for quailing
Verb
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In this Tudor renovation, designer Barrie Benson combined 10 different textiles and prints in a single, orderly viewpoint without flinching.—
Zoe Gowen,
Southern Living,
29 Dec. 2025 -
Human reflexes naturally protect the eyes; blinking, tearing, and flinching are some of the fastest human reflexes.—
Matthew Kayser,
USA Today,
8 Dec. 2025
Verb
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In it, her fellow students can be seen gasping, covering their faces and cringing.—
Catherine Santino,
PEOPLE,
30 Nov. 2025
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Encouraged to see Jones sorta respond, Mackie kept babbling on and on and on about his dad, unaware that everyone else in the room was cringing.—
Lisa Gutierrez,
Kansas City Star,
25 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Trump has been riding roughshod over Washington and voters are recoiling.—
Chris Stirewalt,
The Hill,
12 Dec. 2025
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Now, at least some signs are emerging that both the broader public and leading liberal voices may be recoiling from the doom and gloom.—
Josh Hammer,
MSNBC Newsweek,
10 Dec. 2025
Verb
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Look to your right, where another patron, clad in the skin of a lion, will be cowering under his seat.—
Anthony Lane,
New Yorker,
22 Dec. 2025
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The kids were heard cowering in fear.—
Louis Casiano,
FOXNews.com,
22 Dec. 2025
Verb
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Wind roared through the open doorway and into the vestibule where I was pressed against the side, wincing at the noise.—
Monisha Rajesh,
Outside,
9 Dec. 2025
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The actress was shown wincing in pain before being escorted out of the ballroom on a stretcher into an ambulance.—
Mekishana Pierre,
Entertainment Weekly,
30 Oct. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Quailing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/quailing. Accessed 15 Jan. 2026.
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